Mikhail Kalashnikov - Quotations

Quotations

• "My work is my life, and my life is my work. I invented this assault rifle to defend my country. Today, I am proud that it has become for many synonymous with liberty."
• "It is the Germans who are responsible for the fact that I became a fabricator of arms. If not for them, I would have constructed agricultural machines. (...) If someone asks me how I can sleep at night knowing that my arms have killed millions of people, I respond that I have no problem sleeping, my conscience is clean. I constructed arms to defend my country."
• "Before attempting to create something new, it is vital to have a good appreciation of everything that already exists in this field."
• "I am still ready to shake hands with anyone who designs a better assault rifle than mine."
• "It is painful for me to see when criminal elements of all kinds fire from my weapon I created this weapon primarily to safeguard our fatherland"
• "Anything that is complex is not useful and anything that is useful is simple. This has been my whole life's motto."
• "I would prefer to have invented a machine that people could use and that would help farmers with their work - for example a lawnmower."